


Teach 'Em How To Say Goodbye

by Achilles_Heel



Category: The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Absolute Trash, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dead Jason Grace, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Please Kill Me, Self-Destruction, Theyna - Freeform, thank you very much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:14:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25634140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Achilles_Heel/pseuds/Achilles_Heel
Summary: Rest in Peace, Jason Grace.Thalia Grace wants nothing more than to have Jason back. She wants somebody to love.Reyna wants Thalia to realize that she might have lost Jason, but she had her now.
Relationships: Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Thalia Grace/Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano
Kudos: 29





	1. This Is The Road To Ruin, And We've Started At The End

**Author's Note:**

> That was probably the worst summary I've ever done, but moving on. As always, please enjoy and leave feedback. It is much appreciated.

Thalia sighed as she trudged down the hill to Caldecott Tunnel. She still wasn’t over Jason. How could she be? It had been a little over a year since she rediscovered his very existence, and then he had been stolen from her by death. Curse the Fates. Couldn’t any hero get a happy ending? She blinked away a stray tear or two, glancing up at the stars. She smiled as she saw Zoe Nightshade, forever running across the sky. 

Thalia had never liked Zoe that much, but she did love her as a friend. She wasn’t sure if it was even possible to like her. Even Artemis had loved her. Zoe was the perfect lieutenant, and Thalia could never live up to that. She tried, though. She snapped herself out of her daze and waved to the confused pair of golden-clad kids guarding the camp entrance. As Thalia walked closer and closer, she could see them cautiously conferring with each other, uneasily readying their  _ pilums _ . 

Thalia grinned and raised her arms above her, some of the moonlight glinting off her silver bow. “Don’t shoot. Or stab me,” she amended. “I’m Thalia Grace, Lieutenant of the Artemis, goddess of the Hunt.” The guards weren’t swayed. Thalia furrowed her brow. “I’m the sister of Jason Grace,” she all but spat out. The male guard’s face went slack as the female guard looked at her with an expression of pity. They let her through with a mumbled apology that did nothing to calm her irritation. 

Thalia stalked through the tunnel, but her breath caught in her throat as the glory of Temple Hill filled her view. She hadn’t been to Camp before, but she had seen it in Iris messages and whatnot. Thalia smiled proudly, not even bothering to hide her tears of pure joy. Jason’s dream lived on, and in it so did he. She saw dozens, no, hundreds of new monuments erected to deities. A small part of her wished that there was a monument if only a small one for Jason. Thalia glared for a second at the Temple of Jupiter before walking through the gate. 

She stepped into town, wondering why it was so empty. She glanced at her watch, reading the time as a little past 1 A.M. That would do it. Sighing, Thalia hitched her bag and bow up over her shoulder, glaring at a few Lares as they scowled from balconies. She rolled her eyes and headed past the barracks. She supposed she could sleep there, but she didn’t want to and she had a few reasons (read: excuses) on why not to. A) guys—it wasn’t that Thalia hated them, she just didn’t have the time for them right now. B) She didn’t really know anyone. C) She didn’t want to disturb anyone right now. 

Thalia would just pitch her tent on the field of Mars and bundle herself up, hoping her blanket would protect her from the April’s cool breeze. She hiked out onto the field, cursing as her boot snagged in a small pit. Stupid Romans. Didn’t play on level ground. She had just finished setting up her tent when she saw a silhouette to the south of her position. Thalia guessed it was a girl from the figure, and she was sitting on top of the praetors’ villas. She sighed and walked in the direction of the figure. 

With a start, she realized it was most likely senior praetor, Reyna, or some kid with a death wish. Thalia had only met Reyna once, and she wished it had been under different circumstances. San Juan, Puerto Rico, where dozens of girls who had lived for thousands of years died at the hands of one maniac, not to mention countless Amazons. The Hunters had all shared a profound respect for Reyna when they learned she had finally served justice to Orion. 

Thalia had even sent a letter to personally congratulate her. She just wished they were meeting once again under different circumstances, preferably not under the pretence of a dead brother and friend. She shook her head as she felt a pair of eyes fixed upon her. She looked up sharply at Reyna, sitting there with an expression that Thalia couldn’t quite make out. Was it anger? Regret? Surprise? “Lieutenant Grace.” Reyna’s voice managed to remain neutral for the most part, but Thalia noticed the slight waver. 

“Praetor Ramirez-Arellano. I hope you are well. Or as well as one can be at a time like this. I trust you’re holding up well?” Thalia shot back, struggling to keep acid out of her voice. She mentally slapped herself. Why was this Reyna’s fault? Why was she even getting mad at people in the first place? Reyna’s expression softened in the moonlight, studying Thalia a little too closely for her liking. “I think you better come up here,” the Roman said at last. “There’s a ladder on the side if you need it.”

Thalia nodded and quickly gripped the steel rungs, pulling herself up onto the roof. She sat beside Reyna on the ledge, silently willing her stomach to calm itself. She avoided eye contact with the praetor, the two of them simply staring at what the world had to offer them from a lonely building top in the night. Eventually, Reyna cleared her throat and looked at her, her harsh obsidian gaze penetrating Thalia’s own azure eyes. There was an unspoken name in the air, casting a heavy pall over the pair. Reyna shattered it. “Jason.”

Thalia was about to unleash Hades upon her, but she restrained herself at the last moment. Mostly. “What?” she demanded. “What do you want with him? He’s dead, he left me, again! I thought he was dead before, and now he is! What am I supposed to do with that?” she all but screamed. To her immense surprise, Reyna only nodded sadly. “I obviously don’t know exactly how you feel. My sibling, Hylla...Well, let’s just say our relationship is unique. But I won’t burden you with that.” She took a deep breath, and Thalia could’ve sworn she heard a shudder rack through her body.

Reyna pressed on. “The incident that allowed me to meet Jason took you away from him. On the other side of the coin, you were only allowed to meet Jason on the condition he be taken away from me. Fate is cruel. So’s death. Life is cruel. Sometimes, you just need someone to help you through it.” Reyna smiled wistfully at the sky. “For a small time, I thought it was Jason. But I’ve come to realize that to me, he was always to me as he was to you. A little brother. Someone to love, to cherish, to keep under your wing. But eventually, your love with him would be replaced, by someone who can love him more than that, if possible.”

Thalia felt tears threatening to break out. With a voice choked with emotion, she let the dam break. “I just wish it was me! I’m his older sister, and yet he died older than me! I—I just wish I had more time...I have an eternity ahead of me but nothing I could do could prevent this,” she sobbed, her voice barely above a whisper. Thalia noted with pleasant albeit dulled shock that Reyna’s arm was wrapped around her torso, her maroon cloak draped somewhat over Thalia’s back. 

She had no idea how long they stayed like that, two teenagers mourning a third. “Thalia. I don’t think you should be alone tonight, nor should you be sleeping outdoors in April. You’ll be cold. I’ve got an extra bed inside if you’d like. We can get your stuff in the morning. How about we go to bed now?” Reyna offered gently. Thalia nodded and shakily rose, gripping Reyna’s arm for support before sliding back down the ladder. The Roman let them in through a side door, briefly telling her the directions to the spare bedroom and bathroom. 

She was just so tired. Thalia had left her spare change of clothes out in the tent, but she didn’t feel like going out and grabbing them. She hoped that her current dirty clothes wouldn’t get Reyna’s sheets all grubby though. Thalia walked into the bathroom, accidentally barging in on Reyna who was brushing her teeth. Both immediately apologized, Reyna’s muffled by a toothbrush. “Sorry,” Thalia reiterated. 

The Roman washed out her mouth. “Don’t be,” she smiled, placing a hand on Thalia’s shoulder before moving past her and into the main bedroom. “Sleep well, Thalia. I’ll be in my room if you need anything. Don’t feel bad about waking me, OK?” Thalia nodded, running a hand through her hair as she wet a spare toothbrush. 

Minutes later, she was flicking off her own light, though she noticed Reyna’s was still on. The sound of papers rustling filled her ears. Who on earth did paperwork at 2 A.M.? Thalia wrapped herself under the covers, thinking about what Reyna had said.  _ ‘I don’t think you should be alone tonight. You can stay with me. I’m here if you need anything, you can wake me.’  _ She wasn’t sure how to feel about that. She wasn’t sure if she’d let herself be vulnerable. 

She was even sure if she  _ could  _ be vulnerable after so long. Thalia exhaled deeply, staring into the dark. If this was the road to ruin, she supposed she’d started at the end. 


	2. I'll Check In Tomorrow If I Don't Wake Up Dead

Thalia bolted upright, screaming. As soon as it started, she clamped a hand over her mouth, terrified she’d woken Reyna. She lay back in bed panting as she wiped some sweat from her brow. Thalia closed her eyes. It was always the same. Always Jason dying. She imagined the spear driving through him, she imagined the cruel smirk of the Roman who had slain him. Was her family cursed? It felt like it. 

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. “Come in,” she croaked. Reyna poked her head in, looking concerned as warm yellow light framed her features. “Thalia? Are you OK? It’s around 5 in the morning.” Thalia waited a few seconds before answering, trying to catch her breath. “Yeah...yeah, I’m fine. What are you doing up so early?” she questioned, inviting Reyna to come in. 

The praetor sat down hesitantly on the edge of the bed, studying Thalia worriedly. “I was just getting ready when I heard you scream,” she supplied. “I wanted to know if you were all right. Do you need anything before I leave for work soon?” she inquired, grasping Thalia’s hand reassuringly. Thalia gaped at her. “You’re getting up around 5 A.M. when you went to bed past 2 A.M. so you can go to work?” she laughed incredulously. “How on earth did Jason do that? He needs about 10 hours to even function in the morning.”

Reyna smirked, but there was no malice in it. “Oh, trust me,” she began. “He definitely got his beauty sleep. I would handle all the urgent things on the condition he got me food when I needed it. Looking back, it was completely unfair, but I don’t mind.” She smiled wistfully, and Thalia mirrored it before shaking her head. “Sounds like you were great friends,” she said. “But that still doesn’t answer for your messed-up sleep schedule,” Thalia retorted. 

Reyna took her snark in stride. “And you haven’t still answered why I heard you screaming or my question if you were OK.” Her features lost some of their mirth, and Thalia’s smile slowly slipped from her face. She sighed, rubbing her hands against one another, trying desperately to avoid Reyna’s eyes. The Roman’s gaze didn’t waver. Thalia sighed. “I had a nightmare about Jason and Caligula. It’s been happening a lot lately, and I’m sorry to say that the Hunters don’t really understand. They’re not great with boys in general. I just haven’t been getting a lot of sleep, you know?” she answered, rubbing her hands against her closed eyelids. 

Reyna nodded sympathetically. “We never asked for this, did we?” she chuckled heartlessly. She shook her head sadly before looking back to Thalia. “Well, in any case, it’s still pretty early. When you wake up, you can borrow some of my clothes if you need, though I’m not sure we’re exactly in sync with our fashion preferences,” she grinned. Thalia noticed how pretty she looked when smiled as opposed to her usual tired impassive look. “But really,” Reyna pressed on. “Do you need anything? Anything at all?”

Thalia hesitated. Would it be weird? Would Reyna think she was crazy? Well, she already was crazy, so why not? “Could I have a hug? If not, that’s OK, I totally⸺” Her words were cut short as Reyna moved in and embraced Thalia, who buried her head in the crook of her neck as Reyna rubbed comforting circles into her back. After a few moments, the praetor pulled back, her thumb gently wiping away a small tear that had traced its way down Thalia’s cheek. 

“Go back to sleep. When you wake up, change, shower, relax. I’ve got some things in my room you might enjoy doing. I’ll be home later, all right? And I can bring back some dinner as well. How do burgers sound?” Reyna soothed. Thalia nodded and laid back in bed as she pulled the covers around her, Reyna getting up and flicking the lights off before silently slipping out the door, a small flash of gold and purple filling Thalia’s vision.    
  


She sighed as she closed her eyes once again, trying to lull herself to sleep. What had she gotten herself into this time? Acceptance, Thalia thought. Peace. 


	3. I'm Outside The Door, Let Me In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK, so I'd like to start out with a sorry for the two people that read this. Sorry for not updating Saturday or Sunday (both were incredibly busy, whoops), so here's the final chapter which is much longer (around 2.27k words) than the other chapters. This isn't how I imagined this fic to go, but then again, when does writing work as planned?

Thalia groaned as she tossed and turned in her borrowed bed. Sunlight flooded in through the French windows that lined one side of the room. She glanced at her watch, reading the time as mid-afternoon. Oh boy. Thalia cursed as she scrambled to get out of bed, afraid of being late. She was about to run smack into the doorframe when she realized. Late for what? Reyna had practically ordered that she rest and relax for the day. Thalia exhaled deeply and rolled her shoulders, slowly walking out into the main space of the villa. 

It looked a lot different during the day. There was Reyna’s bedroom, with the door closed, to the right. To the left, a small relaxation area with a sofa, some chairs, and a coffee table. They looked as if they had never been touched before. Ahead of her, there was a modest kitchen, sporting some type of stone countertops with a few barstools. Thalia headed into the bathroom between the two bedrooms, grabbing a spare purple towel from the cabinet and stripping as she turned the shower head on. 

She climbed into the shower, realizing she didn’t have any shampoo or anything. She appraised the meagre selection of bottles lined up against the tiles, opened the top of one, and gingerly sniffed it. It smelled like the ocean wind; cool and salty. Thalia loved the smell of it and eagerly squeezed a dollop of it into her palm and smeared it in her wetted hair. 

About ten minutes later, she was out of the shower, feeling as refreshed as she had been...well, in a long time. Wrapping a towel around herself, Thalia headed into the empty villa. She didn’t want to go into the praetor’s room, but she had no choice but to. What would she find in there? Thalia wearily pushed the door open, surprised not at what she found, but lack thereof. The room was scarily normal, from the hardwood floor to the deep purple duvet cover on grey sheets. There was a desk littered with papers in Latin on one half of the room, and a closet laid to the side. Thalia pushed it open, once again expecting to see some gory sight. 

Nope. Camp Jupiter tees hung on hangers, though Thalia spotted some black and red intermixed. All sorts of jeans lay neatly folded on a shelf, boots, running shoes. Didn’t Reyna have any normal clothes? She sighed, pulling a red shirt off of a hanger, and was eyeing the jeans with disdain before she noticed a pair of grey running sweatpants (seriously, even her comfort clothes were athletic?) and tugged them on along with the shirt. Just as Thalia turned away, a golden glint caught her eyes. 

She poked her head into the back of the closet, her hand making contact with cool metal. Oh, this was going to be fun. She excitedly heaved the full set of Roman armour out of the closet, even complete with Reyna’s trademark purple cloak and sword. Thalia spent way too long trying to figure out how to strap it on correctly but appraised her finished effort. Not bad. She didn’t pull it off as well as Reyna, but then again, not even the average Legion soldier did. There was no doubt about it. The armour and cloak were heavy, and Reyna had seemingly been born to wear them. 

Thalia gazed around, looking for a clock. Her eyes widened when she read the time as a little past 5 P.M. How did it get so late so fast? Reyna would probably be back any minute, glaring daggers from those obsidian eyes. Thalia fumbled around, desperately yanking off the armour and cloak. With some luck and a whole bunch of swearing, she managed to inelegantly shove the set of armour back into the closet, a resounding clash echoing briefly through the room, making her wince. 

She hurriedly stepped out of the room and closed the door before striding into the pristine living area. Thalia unceremoniously plopped onto the sofa, grabbing a paperback that was resting on the coffee table. She flicked the book open, her mind half-skimming through as she pondered about her elusive host. Half an hour went by. She was a third of the way through the book, finding her interest being slowly captivated. 1 hour came and went, Thalia eagerly flipping the pages with zeal.

When it was around 7 o’clock, she was so engrossed in the ending that she didn’t even notice the door opening and a tired Reyna shuffling in, dropping a styrofoam container onto the counter with a tired groan. Her eyes glossed over Thalia. “Dinner,” she managed, retreating into her bedroom with her cloak trailing over the floor and her dozen medals clinking as she moved. Thalia looked up at the voice, realizing it was Reyna. 

She didn’t know what the Roman was doing, but it was clear she needed some personal time before interacting with someone again. Thalia sidled up to one of the bar stools before sitting down and opening the styrofoam container. A cheeseburger and a grilled chicken sandwich laid side-by-side, and Thalia guessed the burger with fries was hers. She selected a napkin and dug in, eating in content silence. When she was done, she washed her hands, licking her lips appreciatively. 

Thalia resumed her perch in the living room, picking up the book she was almost finished with. As she turned the last page and set the book down, she realized that Reyna hadn’t come out of her room yet and it was past 8 P.M. Her chicken sandwich had been cold for a long time by now. Frowning, Thalia rose and hesitantly knocked on Reyna’s door. After hearing nothing, she delicately pushed it open. The Roman was on her bed, laying on her stomach with her head resting over crossed arms, her cloak swept over her like an impromptu blanket. 

Thalia suppressed an ‘aww’, resigning to softly smile as she knocked a little louder on the doorframe to her side, attempting to catch Reyna’s attention, though she didn’t seem to be sleeping. The Roman rolled over and gazed at Thalia with eyebrows raised and eyelids heavy with exhaustion. “Something wrong?” she rasped confusedly. “Absolutely. For starters, your work life is way too draining. I can practically  _ feel  _ how tense you are, Reyna. So here’s what I propose. I am excellent at giving back massages, so that’s what we’re doing, no questions asked,” Thalia stated firmly. 

Reyna stared at her and the daughter of Zeus made a ‘hurry up gesture’ with her hand. “You can’t be serious,” Reyna deadpanned. “I would never. Now go on. As the mortals say, ‘undress to your level of comfort,’” Thalia shot back, refusing to back down. The Roman sighed and rose. “Fine. I am at my comfort level, now stop.” She tried to shoulder past her, but Thalia grabbed her arm, desperately clasping onto the frustrated teen. “Please?” she begged. “As a thank you for letting me stay?” she asked, putting on her best set of puppy eyes. 

Reyna pursed her lips, glancing around as Thalia waited with bated breath. “All right,” Reyna agreed reluctantly, “but.” She held a finger up. “I have some work to do afterwards.” Thalia rolled her eyes, though she was secretly pleased the other girl had relented. She grinned and gestured to the bed as Reyna began to undress, folding her cloak and placing it on her desk and unlatching her armour, letting it fall to the floor with a resounding clank. Thalia massaged and cracked her own knuckles and wrists and everything in-between as the other girl let herself fall onto her stomach. She was determined to make Reyna relax. 

“Are you ready?” Thalia asked, wanting to make sure she was comfortable. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” Great. Here goes nothing. Thalia placed her hands on Reyna’s back, over the shirt. It didn’t go unnoticed that Reyna flinched lightly, her hands fiddling with the end of the sheet. “It’s OK, relax,” Thalia soothed. Reyna slowly let the tension go as hands began to massage her back once more. As Thalia worked out knots, she wondered why she was doing this. Was it a thank you? It was, she supposed. But it was so much  _ more  _ than that. 

For better or worse, Thalia felt that she had some kind of connection with Reyna. Was it because of Jason? Of never having love? Of having friends that leave you and fall for each other? She internally groaned as she resumed her work. Thalia frowned as her hands moved over a raised patch of skin. OK? She switched areas. Same thing. Shooting a curious look at Reyna, who was breathing lightly and evenly (leading her to believe she was asleep), Thalia began to gently lift the hem of Reyna’s shirt. Her eyes took in several scars and slashes, the tanned skin marred by pale white lines. 

She tried her best not to, but her chest sucked in a painfully loud cross between a gasp and a choking noise, alerting Reyna. The brunette’s head whipped around, staring at her accusingly. Thalia backed up against the wall, stammering apologies that Reyna wouldn’t even let her get out. “What are you doing?” the Roman hissed. “That’s sensitive! I should’ve known better, allowing you to do this,” she audibly berated herself. Thalia realized she had better get a word in soon. She sat on the edge of the bed, clearing her throat. 

“Hey, I’m sorry. I really am. I was just...” she exhaled deeply. “It doesn’t matter. Are you OK? Do you want to talk?” Reyna settled her back against her headboard, running a hand through her messy braid. “I apologize for lashing out at you. Obviously, all scars have a story, and all demigods have scars. But those particular scars were from my first quest with Jason.” She smiled a wistful smile, and Thalia found herself mirroring the look. Their eyes met for only a second, but it was a second too long, and the Roman looked away again. 

“Jason might’ve told you he slew the Trojan Sea Monster. That’s true. Sort of.” Reyna gave Thalia a sly smile before continuing. “Because we were in the Fifth Cohort and therefore most popular, the two of us were sent. Both of us were only centurions at the time, though we had both been on some individual quests before. Sending the son of Jupiter to fight a sea monster was pretty stupid, but Jason insisted on it,” she chuckled. “Always the hero, weren’t you, Jason?” Thalia shook her head.

“Anyway, we were on the coastline, searching for an ‘aggressive whale’, as the locals had branded it. Jason flies the two of us out there, but he literally accidentally dropped me, almost right into the mouth of the beast. Lucky me, I slid down its hideous scaly neck, desperately trying to hack into its hard exterior. Jason was too distracted to see the monster lunging for him. It swallowed him whole, and my screaming matched his, but he was inside and I wasn’t.” Thalia raised an eyebrow, wondering how wrong something could go. Scratch that. They were demigods. 

“Moving on. A sword erupted through the sea monster’s gut, and a slimy, bloody Jason stepped out as the creature began to disintegrate. We were beaming at each other until the spiked tail of the monster slammed into my back, launching me into a round of ski-less water skiing. My back was torn up and Jason was furiously apologizing as if he did something wrong. I told him to relax, shut up, and get ready to go try this one cafe downtown because we had time to kill. He wouldn’t stop fussing over me until he tasted these brownies. He was pretty quiet then. Eventually, we headed back, but we never forgot the bond that was formed on that trip.”

Thalia smiled, her eyes crinkling as they met Reyna’s once more, though she was pleased to note Reyna didn’t look away. “That sounds amazing,” she said, grasping the praetor’s hand lightly. “It was amazing,” Reyna echoed. “Ambrosia always tasted like those brownies after that.” Thalia grinned and rose, brushing off her borrowed sweats. “Well, speaking of food, I might just have to eat your sandwich if you’re not planning on it.” Reyna gasped and bounded after Thalia, who was already dashing into the kitchen, reaching for the styrofoam container. 

At the last moment, she felt Reyna’s arms wrap around her from behind, tackling her as the two fell to the ground in a tangled heap, groans and laughs intermixed. Reyna broke free of the mess, triumphantly brandishing her sandwich in Thalia’s face before taking a bite of it, despite it being cold. The daughter of Zeus, though Thalia felt a companionship between the two of them arise. 

She wasn’t brave, nor a good flirt but that wouldn’t stop her. “So,” she began. Reyna raised her eyebrows. Ah, yes. She had the speaking skills of a dictionary in that she thought she would be prepared but nothing worked out in the end. She hoped there was something more than what there probably was. 

“I was wondering if you’d like to take me to the brownie cafe yourself?” As soon as the words left her mouth, Thalia knew she had blown it. Reyna’s eyebrows were attempting to scale Mount Everest at this point as she put down her food and wiped her mouth. “Well,” she smirked, wrapping an arm around Thalia’s shoulders as she gestured to the door. “I thought you’d never ask.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to hear what you think/if you want to give me a prompt that I will absolutely butcher.


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